Char & Ash: Judge of Mystics Saga, #1

By Sapha Burnell

The Mystic Realms keep a tenuous peace after centuries of war. Forged into the Realms' only Judge, demi-god Caleb Mauthisen is both peace maker and executioner of the Mystic Truce. Warrior-priest of preventing collateral damage amongst the Humans' neutral space of Midgard. When Caleb is called to the charred remains of a scorched Sacred Grove outside Dover, rumours reignite tensions as Ares warns of war's whisper. High Queen Selyka is hiding something in the roots and petals of her Fae Courts, and it smells of rot and ash.

Someone is burning the Groves planted from the bodies of fallen soldiers, eliminating their chance to rise again as sentient plants: Fae. Blasphemy and act of war in a single matchstick. Is the only Fae-cursed Mystic War Veteran left next in the line of fire? Tuija Draganova, immortal outcast bogatyr fights off the curse consuming her, and stands by Caleb's side. Lives intertwined by love and shared combat.

Caught between the Mystic Truce, Ares' demands for answers and concern for his cursed lover's safety, Caleb descends into a roiling adventure to find the perpetrators and staunch the flow before the Mystic Realms lose faith in him and in peace. Little does he know the perpetrator Stana stole something far more precious than belief in gods and heroes.

Char & Ash is an emotional and captivating mythpunk / godpunk supernatural fantasy and the first novel in the mythic Judge of Mystics Saga.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Vraeyda Literary
• Release date: Jul 31, 2023
• ISBN: 9781988034379

Sapha Burnell

Cyberpunk + Myth "I never thought a work of science fiction could be so beautiful." Artisan Book Reviews Sapha Burnell is a Canadian novelist, who teethed on images of the Berlin Wall falling down. Caught between cultures in British Columbia, with two decades of humanitarian work focusing in West Africa, Sapha developed a love for cyberpunk, science fiction & comparative mythologies.  Concentrating on emotive, action fuelled works for the adventurous adult, Sapha plays between beauty and grit, with impactful stories chock full of emotion and pugilism.  The Lieben Cycle Book 1: NEON Lieben has been defined as "an insane, diabolical cyberpunk rollercoaster", and "A good blend of hard sci fi with a bit of space opera... couldn't put it down!".